Hunger Games: Catching Fire tops MTV Movie Awards

Young-adult favorite The Hunger Games: Catching Fire was voted the best movie of the year, scooping top acting honors at the MTV Movie Awards on Sunday, which reflected the irreverent ceremony's appeal to young fans.

The second installment of the hugely popular Hunger Games books beat out this year's Oscar best picture winner 12 Years a Slave in online voting that continued through much of the show.

Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson won best female and male performances for their roles as Katniss and Peeta, the two youths fighting to give hope to an oppressed society.

At the unbuttoned awards ceremony in Los Angeles, hosted by comedian Conan O'Brien, Zac Efron won for best shirtless performance. Best kiss went to a three-way smooch between Will Poulter, Jennifer Aniston and Emma Roberts in the comedy We're the Millers.

But there were also serious moments in the show. Hutcherson remembered his Hunger Games cast mate Philip Seymour Hoffman, who died of a drug overdose earlier this year.

"I know that if Philip were here, he would think this is really cool," said Hutcherson.

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire has earned more than $850 million at the worldwide box office, and two more films, Mockingjay parts 1 and 2, will complete the franchise from Lionsgate.

In one of the night's upsets, Tris, played by Shailene Woodley in Divergent, won favorite character of the year, coming from behind in last-minute voting to surpass Lawrence's Katniss. They each received more than 9 million votes.

O'Brien, 50 years old and noticeably older than most award winners and audience members, kicked off the show by trying to break the record for the most celebrity cameos in his intro, notching 50. Among them were Taylor Swift, who gave him a manicure, and Internet sensation Grumpy Cat, who slept in the front row of the audience.

Shirtless acceptance

Among the most buzzworthy moments of the night were Efron's shirtless acceptance of his award, thanks to help from singer Rita Ora, and actor Seth Rogen giving his mother a prolonged kiss on stage.

The night's musical performances included a duet by Rihanna and Eminem singing The Monster before they head out on tour together this summer. There was also a tribute to Paul Walker, a fixture in the street racing franchise Fast and Furious, who died in a car crash last year.

The awards are an opportunity for film fans to pick their own favorites, in contrast to most of the film industry awards, such as the Oscars, which are voted by elite industry groups.

The Wolf of Wall Street and American Hustle got a chance to redeem themselves after walking away empty-handed from the Oscars on March 2. They each landed eight nods for the MTV awards, but won little on Sunday.

Reuters

(China Daily 04/15/2014 page10)